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Fun with Lumix GM5

raist3d

Well-known member
A few GX850... please feel free to tell me this should be in its own thread if you don't think it belongs here...







- Ricardo
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
With all he cool new stuff being released onto the market every day, it's easy to forget what this tiny, little beast can do. The GM5 is still great.

GM5 with Pana 25mm f/1.7 @ f/2.2



Location is Manila, in case anybody wonders.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
I'm not sure, but I don't think I used the GX8 during my trip to Norway last week. I miss the articulated LCD though, so the GX850 is probably next on my shopping list. Small is good :)

Here's a happy girl concentrating on her new baby doll, the prize for being without Papa for a week.

GM5 with Pana 12-35mm f/2.8 @ 35mm and f/2.8

 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
The GM5 represents the essence of digital photography; small, easy to use, relatively advanced and a lens mount that opens for an endless selection of great lenses.

GM5 with Pana 12-35mm f/2.8 @ 12mm and f/3.5

 

raist3d

Well-known member
GM5, ISO 25600 (!), Dxo, 1/100, old Olympus 4/3rds 50mm F2.0 macro prime.



That lens is special.

- Ricardo
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
I've said it before: It's the only camera I need. Where's the GM6, Panasonic?

GM5 with Pana 35-100mm f/4-5.6 @ 38mm and f/5.3

 

bensonga

Well-known member
I have looked at the GM5 many times, but aside from the smaller size, I'm not sure what is better or advantageous about the GM5 vs my GH3, GX8, EM1-1 or the G85. The smaller size is not something that is important to me. All of my existing MFT cameras are already small enough for me.

Is there something else I'm missing about the GM5 that makes it so appealing and special for some?

Gary
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
I have looked at the GM5 many times, but aside from the smaller size, I'm not sure what is better or advantageous about the GM5 vs my GH3, GX8, EM1-1 or the G85. The smaller size is not something that is important to me. All of my existing MFT cameras are already small enough for me.

Is there something else I'm missing about the GM5 that makes it so appealing and special for some?

Gary
Nope, it's the size, but:

- It's not a little bit small, it's enormously small. Without a lens, it's a bit smaller than an Sony RX100 IV and much lighter.
- It has all the physical controls and buttons that you'd expect from an amateur DSLR camera, and they are mostly laid out the same way as with other advanced Panasonic cameras. It is an advanced camera.
- The viewfinder is not Panasonic's best, but it's very good, and more than sufficient for manual focusing.
- To me, it's a 200 gram pro camera. I bring it everywhere, either on it's own or as as backup/supplement to the GX8.

I've always wanted a small camera, at least since I gave away the excellent Canon A95, but most advanced p&s cameras include one or more compromises that I would prefer not to live with. The Sony RX100 is too small (the GM5 has the advantage of a lens sticking out, making it easier to hold), the Panasonic LX100 is too big, all the Canons are too slow... and so on. In addition, the GM5 is a fully functional backup for any m4/3 camera while adding only 200 grams to my bag, and hardly taking up any space at all. Image quality is obviously on par with that generation of m4/3 cameras.

I've considered the GX850 as a supplement to get a flip-up LCD and 4K video within the same size range (it uses the same batteries as the GM5). What keeps me back are the ergonomics that aren't even close to those of the GM5 and the fact that it lacks a viewfinder. As things look now, I'm probably looking at a GM5, GX8, G9 trio. That should cover me very well for more or less any challenge, and when it doesn't, I have the Nikon D610.

I have a tiny, little camera bag that rooms the GM5 with two lenses and a couple of extra batteries. All in all, it's less than 500 gram with the most common setups (GM5 + 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 + 35-100mm f/4-5.6 or one of the lenses replaced by a small prime). It's what I grab when I go out the door. It's my "no excuse" bag :)

It works very well with the 12-35mm f/2.8 btw. When carrying the GX8 and the GM5, the GX8 is mostly equiped with a long lens, and the GM5 with the 12-35mm.
 

bensonga

Well-known member
Thanks for that very good summary Jorgen. Since I am happy with the size of my GX8s for travel, one with the 12-35/2.8 mounted and the other with the 35-100/2.8 mounted, it seems like I can stick with those. I enjoy having two identical cameras to use (one black and one silver) which together cover the equivalent of 24-200mm at f2.8.

If I ever need to reduce the size and weight of my travel kit even further, I might look for a GM5 (or GM6 etc).

Gary
 
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